I have had three great meals since I last posted. Without going into too much detail, here goes.


Thursday night - had dinner at www.scotthowardsf.com with my friend Alex, who was in town for work. It was fantastic!!! Alex is a great non-date date, he even let me order the wine, which was nice of him! ) Here is a pic of me and Alex from the last time he was in town...this was taken at the Redwood Room at the Clift Hotel, which is super posh and fancy. I am obviously underdressed and look somewhat like a hippie...which I usually do not.


Friday night - had dinner with 3 girlfriends at www.umamisf.com. I wasn't aware that this place turns into a crazy nightlife scene bar about 10pm, so that was not so great. We were getting bumped and jostled around all night, which wasn't fun. Also we were sitting near the door so every time the door opened (about every 12 seconds, since you can't smoke inside in California), it was like sitting at the North Pole. BUT...they had delicious sake cocktails, which were really fun. One in particular called the "Hello Kitty". Now i'm not a fan of the Sanrio crap, but this drink was GREAT!!! After dinner, my friend Alexandra and I sat at the bar for a drink and chatted and people watched. There was a young girl flirting very heavily with an OLD man, so we were totally entranced and decided he must be some kind of mogul.


Saturday night - had dinner with Kami and a bunch of her friends for someone's birthday at www.himerestaurant.com. Actually, it was 3 people's birthdays, one of whom was named "Dawg Nutz". I didn't really get the full story there. Kami is a good friend from college...I hadn't seen her in an inexcusably long time, so it was good to catch up with her!

This afternoon I am flying to to Philadelphia, then driving into Delaware. I find it hard to believe that there isn't a commercial airport in Delaware, but that's what I've been told. I saw a private airport there once, but nothing big enough for large planes. I can't believe we have states in the USA that dont have an airport. This seems surprising to me.

Also, I will be in Delaware all week with all the project Partner big-dogs (not to be confused with Dawg Nutz...) so I have to be on my best behavior. Hopefully this also means that there are some free dinners in my future. :)

More to come later. thanks for the comments/questions, they are great and wonderful.

ALSO - my great friend Jac from college moved to Switzerland (from Chicago) a few months ago and is blogging about her experiences there. Link is to the right - many of you know her so go read about her new life!!

So my week of overindulgence continues. Yesterday I had lunch with my college friend Emily. Since I know you’re curious (and since it’s a funny picture), I’m pasting a pic of Emily below. She’s the one not dressed like Marilyn Monroe. Ha!















Anyway, not only did I have a great meal, BUT I heard a great story! Emily and her friends were in Park City last week for Sundance, and happened to see Mandy Moore and DJAM (hot – but weird – new rumored celebrity couple) making out!! So they take a quick picture with their camera and think nothing of it. A few days later, someone overheard them talking about it and says ‘The paparazzi don’t have any pictures of them kissing…I bet you could sell it!” SO…they called all the trashy magazines up and ended up selling the picture to TMZ for $1500.00. wow! I’m so impressed. So those of you who live in celeb-full cities, keep your eyes peeled. That’s the easiest way to make money I’ve ever heard!

And I give you…..the pic. http://www.tmz.com/2007/01/23/mandy-and-am-swap-spit-in-public/

In other news. Today’s airport for discussion is….Phoenix! As many of you know, I spent quite a bit of time in the PHX airport over the last few years. Most of this time was in Terminal 2 (The United and Continental terminal – also used to be the USAir Terminal, but that was moved over with AmWest when they merged). Anyway – Terminal 2 is horrendous. Terminal 4 (Am West, Southwest, USAir, etc) is better though. Let’s discuss.

Pros:
1. Free wireless internet. This is huge. I really appreciate and love this about the PHX airport.
2. Terminal 2 has very short security lines. Probably because that terminal only has like 10 gates and I’ve only ever seen 5 of them used before.
3. Terminal 4 has some decent food options. Paradise Bakery, CPK, Starbucks. Yes I realize those are actually terrible options, but as compared to Terminal 2, that’s heaven
4. Parking is very convenient. The garage is somehow built INTO the airport…so when you park, walk to elevator, then you arrive right in the middle of the airport! So you can walk to the ticket counters or straight to security. Very convenient
5. I saw Nick Lachey there once.
6. A nice young male gate agent almost upgraded me and Cara on our flight to Switzerland because we were flirting with him. But then he realized there were no seats left in 1st or Business. So he didn’t. Actually this maybe should be a ‘con’, but it’s the thought that counts, so I’ll keep it as a pro.

Cons:
1. Food selection in Terminal 2 is as follows. A pizza place. THAT’S ALL!!! They used to have a sandwich place, a hot dog place, and a pizza place. Then they started renovating and closed up everything. Pizza is your only option.
2. Magazine store has very limited selection.
3. For a terminal with only 3 retail spots, it seems odd that they would let a Native American art/jewelry store rent one of them. I have been at that airport probably 200 times (not exaggerating) and I’ve never seen a single person in that store.
4. The regional jets depart from a ‘side’ terminal that branches off Terminal 2. You have to walk about 100 yards outside then into another building. Outside in Phoenix in the summer with luggage and wearing work clothes. Not fun.
5. They close the airport when the temperature reaches 120 F. Something to do with the plane tires melting. Thankfully I’ve only experienced this once.
6. On a flight from PHX home to SFO once, I had to sit next to a man on the flight who insisted on reading ‘Playboy’ the whole time. It was uncomfortable.
7. On a flight from PHX home to SFO once, I sat next to a 20 year old girl with a baby. She said she was pissed she couldn’t go out and get drunk for her upcoming 21st birthday because of the kid. Then she talked about how hot Kevin Federline was and he was her ultimate man. This conversation made me terrified for the future of our country.
8. 25% of the men walking around the PHX airport at any given time are wearing cowboy hats. I don’t understand. I’m from TX and I’ve never seen as many cowboy hats as at the PHX airport.
9. OH WOW how did I not make this the #1 Con. The Rental Car Shuttle. PHX used to have a separate bus for each Rental Car Company (ie – Hertz, Avis, etc…each had their own bus/van). THEN…about a year ago, they built a massive new complex for all the rental car companies to share. They got rid of all the independent shuttles and just had 1 called ‘Rental Car Shuttle’, which you take to the big complex, then go to your company of choice). Anyway – the old way…there were buses like every 5 minutes, very speedy, and the lots were really close. However, with the new shuttle…the buses are more spread out, they’re always uncomfortably full, and the lot is like 10+ minute drive away. Actually, that’s not the bad part. It’s when you return your car and go back to the airport. I used to allocate about 15 minutes for ‘car return, bus to airport’, and that was always more than enough. Once they switched, I had to increase my time to 45-60 minutes. It’s terrible. Once you drop your car off, you walk through a huge burning hot parking garage, then up an escalator, then down a looong hallway, then to the busses. But the busses only show up about every 15 minutes (Terminal 2….again getting the shaft). So I wasn’t a fan of this new process. And I think this new ‘consolidated’ rental car complex thing is becoming more popular. I’ve seen it now at a few airports (DFW has it, for example) and I’m sure it’s more cost effective for the airport, and for some of the smaller regional rental car companies, but in my experience it’s just a pain.

Ok that’s it.

My sister sent me this link this morning and again, i'm totally intrigued. http://www.willitblend.com/videos.aspx?type=unsafe
I can't stop playing around on this website. It's hilarious. And i love the faces the guy keeps making. I bet he would be really fun to hang out with - his commentary when the barbies finish blending is great. See, now aren't you interested? Go look!

My week of being at home continues. It's everything I wanted and more. I leave on Sunday afternoon to fly to Philadelphia for a few days for work, then am flying directly to Tahoe for a long weekend of skiing and Super Bowl watching at the casinos. Then I'll be back in SF for about 12 hours, then I fly to Dallas for a few days for work. I'll definitely be stopping at Taco Cabana. In fact, a guy I work with (in Dallas) insists on IMing me every day (when i'm not in Dallas) right about lunchtime and saying "Hey, going to run to TC...want anything?". It's very cruel. He knows it's torture for me to be denied and then have it rubbed in my face.

So went to dinner last night (www.perbaccosf.com) with my friend Melissa, and 2 of her friends Jennie and Karen, who are wonderful. We had some hilarious storytelling and had a great meal. They decided they didn't care what we did, so basically I ordered all the wine and all the food and we just shared everything. It was a great way to do it, bc the waiter just focused on ME ME ME all night, which of course I just hated. :)

So I know you're all dying to hear what we ate.
-We started with the "Salumi Misto", which was a platter of cured meats. Yum!! They were all really good, except for one that was basically huge chunks of fat.
-Then we had the pear and endive salad. This was a dissspointment. Not very good.
-Tajarin (Tagliatelle, pork sauce, and mushrooms)
-Butternut Squash Pasta
-Steak
-Garlic Broccoli

I have lunch AND dinner plans with friends today, so expect more food-related posts later!

Today I am so bored at work that I've set my itunes to only play songs that have never played before. There are a lot more than I was expecting. Then i realize why. My sister must have uploaded her complete and extensive collection of "Queen" albums onto my computer at some point. I hate Queen. So my plan backfired.

Ok my airport list will continue in my next post - as I sadly have to do some real work now. Please vote on which airport you want to hear about next. If you want something I'm not that familiar with I'll do it...but it will be 99% made up. Just warning you.

SFO and Something cool!!!

I found this online and I am totally intrigued. www.dinnerinthesky.com

seriously - how cool is that? It looks like they only do it in Belgium...i'm sure insurance would have a coronary if you tried to do that here. but I am totally going to do that when i have lots of money to burn. Although there are some obvious logistical questions...like, all the food is obviously premade, right? What if you have to use the restroom? They mention that there is room for an 'entertainer', but what would you have? a comedian? a magician? but the person would be totally surrounded by guests? and obviously in the way of the chef and the waiter. i just dont understand. i need more information. has anyone done this??

So one of the things that is interesting about being away from home so much is that when you are actually home for more than 48 hours, social invitataions are just flying in. Since i've been home since last Thursday...I've had quite the busy week of dinners and meeting up with friends. Last night I had dinner with my friend Diane and we went to see 'the Painted Veil', which was pretty good, but a little slow and depressing. Also, it's not nominated for any Oscars, so it was totally not helping me in my goal to see all the nominated movies before the ceremony (this gives me about a month). I have seen a lot of them, but not all. Although i have little to no interest in some of them, so if anything slips through the cracks, it's probably goign to be 'venus' and/or 'letters from iwo jima'.

Note: I have a lot of fun dinners at exciting restaurants in the next few days, so i'll keep you posted. although last night me and D ate at (shame) Tony Roma's, since it was right next to the theatre. i had chicken fingers. not glamorous.

I had a request for another Airport-specific post. I have lots of airport knowledge so i'll do 1 a day and give you comments on each.

So today I give you my home airport - SFO. The website is really good.
http://www.flysfo.com/guide_nonflash/index.html

Pros -
1. United Hub
2. Gateway to Asia (this is nice bc united generally flies huge planes to SFO bc they will then be used for flights west. so if you fly to sfo from den or ord, you usually get a monstrous plane, which is tons more comfortable than a regular plane)
3. Huge magazine/book store right after security (where i once ran into Sean Penn).
4. Great food court. Italian, mexican, Tacos, Sushi, Noodles, Gourmet Pizza, etc. Although this is only in the United Terminal. If you fly America West (USAir), the food in that terminal is disgusting.
5. Allegedly there is a vending machine that sells ipods in the International terminal at SFO, but i've never seen it.
6. Beauty Salon in International terminal called "The Hairport", which is a hilarious name.
7. Moving Walkways everywhere.
8. DVD Rental Store (iv, i dont use this....i agree that its kind of silly. BUT...the kiosk is always full - and i could see myself needing to use it in a pinch)
9. Body Shop Store right next to the gate for PHL flights
10. Gordon Biersch right next to the Phoenix gate.

Cons -
1. $50 cab ride to my house
2. They're renovating the Premier+ Status Check in Area, so it's a total mess
3. It takes 900 years to get your luggage
4. Most of the shops close early so when i take a red-eye, there's nothing to do while i wait.
5. Bathrooms are gross. And they close 2 of the front ones at like 9pm, so you have to hike like 1/2 mile to the big ones if you're there late at night.
6. Sometimes hard to get a cab that takes credit cards

That's about it for now. I'm still taking comments and suggestions for more stuff to talk about. Although i have lots of ideas now!!!

Airports: Some Thoughts

Those of you who know me know that I travel a lot for my job. I have come to be an expert (self-named, of course) in airport layouts. I'm certain that whoever designed most of the airports in the US has never actually packed a bag. Or been ON a plane. Actually, I'm going to include London's Heathrow airport in that category too. Let's discuss:

1. Airport Bathrooms - The only way you can use an airport restroom is to use the handicapped stall. Since I'm not actually handicapped, I usually feel really guilty when doing this. However, anyone who has ever tried to use a regular (is that wrong to call non-handicapped stuff 'regular'? that seems mean) stall knows that it's physically impossible to carry in a laptop bag AND a rolling suitcase AND yourself. And I'm not particularly obese either, I can't imagine how anyone larger than me would ever be able to get in there and close the door! So I usually end up leaving my rolling bag outside the door (just sitting there waiting to be stolen) and that frees up a little room. Now, I have never used a men's room, but I hear that it's much more disgusting because you basically have to leave all your stuff on the floor right next to the urinal where there is pee splashing all over the place. And your bag is now soaked in pee. Also disgusting. Why can't they just make the stalls bigger? Or have a shelf you can put your stuff on when using the urinal? Or some kind of splash guard? Anyway this is gross and I'm done discussing it.

2. Airport Food Options - Appalling. SFO has good food, but I think it's because our airport is usually totally full of Asian tourists and they dont eat pizza and Subway (from what I can tell, at least). I'm usually running kind of late to the airport and run through security and then find out that my food options include greasy pizza, a disgusting pre-made sandwich wrapped in saran wrap (and I'm sorry - but who buys pre-made egg salad that's all squished up through the saran? sick), and other gross options. Ok sometimes there's also a Chili's Too, which in this situation would be my 1st choice. But they're not very fast, so that's sometimes not an option. So i'm embarassed to say that in this case (meaning....twice a week) I usually buy a bottle of water and a large (bc they always offer to upsell you, and i always say yes) Bud Light and consider that my dinner. And now I understand why I cannot lose weight. Oh well. And I think that selling your customers those little snack boxes is seriously gross.

3. Magazines - I usually buy a few magazines before my flight. Yes, I read real books too. But on my ~6 hour plane rides (twice a week) sometimes you just want to veg. And i love trashy magazines, so sue me. So I can get away with watching movie or tv shows on my computer for about 2 hours until the battery dies (assuming i dont have real work to do, which i usually do). then i sometimes watch the in-flight movie (but i absolutely cannot watch freaking "gridiron gang" anymore, and that's all they're showing on united these days), then i read, then i want trashy magazines. So i have purchased them in advance for this very moment. BUT...you can read Us Weekly in about 30 minutes (less if you just look at the pics like some people i know....). Then i'm always hit with guilt...like, i cannot believe i just spent $4.00 for this. Even worse if you've been tricked into buying multiple (ie - USW, In Touch, Star, OK, etc). Because they all have the same pictures. So it's kind of a waste. Not saying I haven't done it, but it's a waste. So I usually offer them to women sitting around me (this isn't sexist, but men usually dont want them...). Then i just shove them in the seat back pocket for some lucky person to find on the next flight. BUT....there should be a magazine exchange program (they have this for books....but who can seriously finish a whole book then comes back to the airport to return it for 50% of the price!??!). I would totally do that for magazines. Can we start this program?

*disclaimer - I recognize that most airports (and most planes, for that matter) were designed and built long before any of the current security measures were put into effect. That would explain some of the inconveniences I mentioned above. However, every airport I go through is having expansions, renovations, etc...how can they not fix these things? Weird.

Ok that's all my commentary for now. More to come. Leave comments!!